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Orien Greene
Orien Randolph Greene II (born February 4 1982, in Gainesville, Florida) is an American professional Basketball player currently with My Guide Amsterdam. A third-year player, his first two seasons were spent with the NBA's Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers, respectively. College career A highly-touted prospect coming out of high school, the 6'4" (1.93 m) Point Guard originally chose to attend the University of Florida, his hometown college. However, after a couple of years Greene became dissatisfied with his playing time and decided to transfer to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where he became known in the Sun Belt Conference for his aggressive play, winning the Defensive Player of the Year award his senior season. NBA career Greene came into the 2005 NBA Draft far under the Radar, and it came as a surprise to some analysts when he was taken as a second-round pick (53rd overall) by the Boston Celtics, despite the fact that Celtics' director of basketball operations Danny Ainge had been eyeing him for some time. Greene was originally expected to have to fight for his roster spot coming into the 2005-06 season, however his strong play in the preseason vaulted him into second on the depth chart behind Delonte West to begin the season. His status as the backup point guard was cemented by a season-ending injury to Dan Dickau and the trade of Marcus Banks to the Minnesota Timberwolves. On March 29, 2006, Greene was suspended by the Boston Celtics for one game after he was charged with driving his Sport utility vehicle at more than 90 mph on a street in suburban Boston. On June 30, 2006, Greene was waived by the Boston Celtics. He was claimed off waivers by the Indiana Pacers, and played for their 2006-2007 team. Greene was used very sparingly in his season with the Pacers. He played in only 41 games, averaging 6.2 minutes per game; quite a drop off compared to playing in all but 2 games the previous year with the Celtics and averaging 15.4 minutes per game. The Pacers brought in Darrell Armstrong (from Dallas) and Keith McLeod (from Golden State) to compete with Greene for minutes at point guard. With Jamaal Tinsley holding the starting position, Greene fell to fourth on the depth chart, which resulted in very little playing time. Greene signed with the Sacramento Kings on August 30, 2007. He was waived by the Kings November 15, 2007 after playing just 7 games. New Zealand Breaker career He had struggled badly with foul troubles, having been fouled out in the first two games, but as he become adjusted to the rules, he proved to be a threat on both ends of the floor. In his shortened season, he led the league in steals average. Notes Orien, when he was 10, was on the roster of a Gainesville Rec League team with Vernell Brown. Unfortunately, shortly before the basketball season began, he suffered a broken leg in a youth football game. External links * * *It Hasn't Been Easy Being Greene